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Henry Hudson/Transcript
Transcript Text Reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby. An animation shows an 8-bit video game, "Quest for the Northwest Passage." It shows a pixelated map of the world with a ship headed toward North America from Europe. Tim watches Moby play the game with a controller. TIM: Sure you want to go that way? MOBY: Beep. The ship in the video game has Moby’s face on its flag and Moby is the character sailing the ship as it tries unsuccessfully to land on the shore. Moby hands Tim a letter. Tim reads from the typed letter. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, I've heard the Hudson River was named after some guy called Henry Hudson. Who was he? Thanks, Olive. Henry Hudson was the greatest explorer who never found what he was looking for. An image shows Henry Hudson on a ship. TIM: He was born in England, sometime in the late 1500s. An image shows England on a map of western Europe. TIM: Back then, before planes or trains, people traded goods by boat. Traveling by sea could take forever, especially if you were going all the way to Asia. An animation of the map reveals Europe, Africa, and Asia. A sailing ship leaves England and sails around the tip of Africa, toward Asia. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Silks and spices were worth their weight in gold, and the far east was the only place to get them. The map of Asia shows bolts of silk fabric and sacks of spices. TIM: Many people set sail to find these items during the Age of Exploration. This was a period when European explorers searched for trade routes, land, and riches. An image shows three famous explorers: Ponce de Leon, Christopher Columbus, and Francisco Coronado. In the background are sailing ships. TIM: Reaching Asia by sea was cheaper and safer than the old Silk Road route. An image shows a map of the continent of Asia. An animation shows the old Silk Road routes lined with the faces and swords of warriors, indicating it was dangerous. TIM: But many explorers believed there had to be a faster route than going all the way around Africa. So they turned their eyes west. They knew that since the earth was round, if they sailed far enough west, they'd hit China. An animation shows a globe. Only the eastern continents are visible. The globe rotates until Asia (with China labeled) becomes visible. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Right. In 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered a teeny-tiny problem with that plan. The continents of North and South America are now visible on the globe. Columbus’ ships appear, almost crashing into the North American coastline. The sound of skidding is heard. TIM: But the promise of a faster route to Asia didn't die there. More than a hundred years after Columbus, Henry Hudson was determined to find a way. An image shows Henry Hudson studying a map. TIM: Between 1607 and 1610, he led four voyages to try and find it. Everything we know about Henry Hudson's life comes from the journals he kept during those voyages. An animation shows the back of a seated Henry Hudson. He is writing with a quill pen by candlelight. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Nope, we don't know when he was born or much else about him. An image shows a close up of Henry Hudson. TIM: That famous portrait of him? It's not him. We have no idea what he looked like. The image changes. Hudson's face disappears and is replaced with a question mark. Then an alien-looking face replaces the question mark. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Well, let's just keep showing him how everyone else does. The image changes back to the original. Then Hudson smiles. TIM: In 1607, Hudson convinced some English merchants to pay for a voyage to Asia. His idea was that he could get there by sailing north through the Arctic Ocean. An animation shows Hudson and his men on a ship nearing snow-covered land. Santa Claus appears holding a sign that says, "Winter is coming." MOBY: Beep? TIM: Nope, they hadn't even reached the Arctic Ocean before icy conditions forced them to turn back. An animation shows the men on the ship wearing hats and covered in a layer of ice. Snow adorns the top of the ship and there is ice in the ocean. They pass Santa Claus again. This time his sign says, "I tried to warn you!" TIM: But Hudson convinced the same group of merchants to pay for a second mission. An image shows a stage withthe curtains lowered. The curtains part to reveal a sign that reads, "Voyage 2: The Sequel! Starring Henry Hudson." TIM: They made it a lot farther this time, but there was just too much sea ice. After this failure, Hudson lost his English backers. An animation shows a ship sailing around the top of Europe. As the ship gets farther north, ice appears, blocking its path. MOBY: Beep. TIM: He turned to England's biggest trading competitor, the Dutch. Specifically, the Dutch East India Company, the largest company in the world at that time. An animation shows Henry Hudson asking the head of the Dutch East India Company to fund his trip. Hudson taps his fingers nervously on the desk. His request is approved and he smiles as he is handed a bag of money. TIM: They agreed to finance his third voyage and gave Hudson a ship called the Half Moon. An animation shows stage curtains opening and the sign, "Voyage 3: Here We Go Again! Starring Henry Hudson." TIM: But as they were sailing through the Arctic— MOBY: Beep. TIM: You guessed it: ice. An animation shows a sailing ship on the ocean, surrounding by snow and ice. The ship slams into some ice and stops. TIM: This time, Hudson hit upon a new plan: instead of sailing northeast, they would go northwest. An animation shows Henry Hudson on his ship. As he gets an idea, a candlestick appears over his head instead of a light bulb. TIM: See, in those days, most of North America hadn't been mapped. Many Europeans thought there must be a waterway leading all the way to the Pacific Ocean. They called this mythical route the Northwest Passage. Hudson's new plan was to be the first explorer to find it. An animated map shows North America dividing in half, with the mythical waterway, the Northwest Passage, in the middle. A red line indicates the path to the Pacific Ocean. TIM: He led his crew down the American coast, sailing into the mouth of a river. Local tribes called it the Mahicannituck River. Today, it's known as the Hudson. An animation shows Hudson and his crew sailing along the river. Then the modern New York City shoreline and the Statue of Liberty come into view. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Yup, this time he was sure he'd found the way. Other Europeans had been to this river, but Hudson was the first to navigate it. An animation shows Hudson steering the ship. TIM: And then, about 150 miles in, the water grew too shallow to continue. An animation shows the ship hitting the muddy bottom of the river and stopping. TIM: When Hudson returned to Europe, England's King James I made him an offer: leave the Dutch East India Company and find the Northwest Passage for England. An image shows Henry Hudson holding a Dutch flag and meeting with King James I. The king presents Hudson with a box overflowing with gold. The Dutch flag is replaced with a British flag. TIM: Hudson agreed and set out on his fourth voyage in 1610. An animation shows a stage. The curtains open and show the sign, "Voyage 4: What could possibly go wrong?" TIM: Seeking another entrance to the Northwest Passage, he followed an inlet into northern Canada. In July they reached a huge body of water, now known as Hudson Bay. They spent months mapping the coastline, but couldn't find a way west. And then winter set in. An animation shows a map of North America with a ship sailing through an inlet in Canada and entering Hudson Bay. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Hudson Bay filled up with ice, blocking the way out. An animation shows the ship in Hudson Bay, stuck on ice. TIM: The crew was forced to drop anchor and stay for the season. Many of them blamed Hudson for their predicament. It took until the following June for the ice on the bay to melt. And by then, the crew was starving. An animation shows Hudson and his crew huddled in blankets around a fire trying to warm their hands. As they look at Hudson, the crewmembers scowl. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Some were convinced that Hudson had a secret stash of food. So even though they were heading home, the crew mutinied. An image shows an invitation that reads, "You are cordially invited to a mutiny!" An animation shows Hudson holding the invitation on a platter with his crew pointing their guns and swords at him. TIM: They forced Hudson and those still loyal to him onto a small boat. None of them were ever seen again. An animation shows Hudson and his few loyal crew members on a small boat while the rest of the crew remains on the ship. Hudson's boat disappears from sight MOBY: Beep. TIM: Okay, so Henry Hudson never found his way to Asia. MOBY: Beep. TIM: And he didn't even discover the Hudson River or most of the other bodies of water that carry his name. An animation shows a map of North America. Images show Giovanni da Verrazano, discoverer of the Hudson River, and Martin Frobisher, discoverer of the Hudson Strait. TIM: But his third expedition brought the Dutch to the New World. An animation shows a Dutch native holding a Dutch flag, claiming the land for his country. TIM: They settled along the Hudson River and founded New York. An animation shows the Hudson River. The image changes into the modern New York City skyline, including the Statue of Liberty. TIM: England started colonies along the East Coast. These eventually became the United States. Later on, they used Hudson's last voyage as a basis to claim land in Canada. An animation shows the coastline of the Eastern United States. British flags represent English colonies. Then the colonies transform into the shapes of the East coast states. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Today, Henry Hudson's name can be found on schools, bridges, towns, and waterways. Images show a school labeled "Henry Hudson Regional" a bridge, and a waterway. TIM: In fact, there's more water named for Henry Hudson than for any other person in history. MOBY: Beep. Moby points at a glass of ice water. TIM: Um, if you really want to. The glass of ice water is roped off as a museum exhibit called Hudson Ice Water. Next to it is a stop sign that reads, "Don't Drink!"Category:BrainPOP Transcripts